James VII & II sat on the throne of Scotland, England and Ireland for three and a half years. But by the time he ascended the throne, he had already had personal experience in governing Scotland, first personally, in Edinburgh from late 1679 through 1682, then from London for the remainder of Charles II's reign. A Roman Catholic, James, duke of York was successful and popular in that traditionally Presbyterian country and was able to build up a solid core of loyal support for the monarchy and for himself. The manner in which he did this is one of the subjects of this work.James' inability to capitalize on the support he enjoyed in Scotland is the second main focus of this study. After his accession to the throne as James VII & II, the king came to rely almost completely on James Drummond, earl of Perth and his brother John Drummond, earl of Melfort in his government of Scotland. These two men--fiercely loyal, ambitious, bigoted--converted to Catholicism in 1685 and alienated all those in Scotland who earlier had worked with and supported James. By 1688, this alienation, combined with the James' determination to gain councils that would support his plan to restore Catholics to full citizenship, weakened the Scots' attachment to the king. In the face of William of Orange's invasion of England, James' earlier strength in Scotland was to prove meaningless.